


Work of art

by Daughter_of_Scotland



Series: Coldflash Short Stories [1]
Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: First Meetings, Gen, Len is a tattoo artist, Pre-Canon, Tattoos
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-29
Updated: 2015-07-29
Packaged: 2018-04-11 21:17:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 578
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4452758
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Daughter_of_Scotland/pseuds/Daughter_of_Scotland
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Len is a tattoo artist and his new customer is a great canvas.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Work of art

**Author's Note:**

> Just a short thing I wrote on the way to work as I was thinking about tattoos

The young man entering his studio was barely old enough to be there.  
Len checked his id thoroughly, noting that the kid had turned 18 just a few days ago.

“Congratulations,” Len murmured and gave back the id. “What do you have in mind?”

The kid was quiet as he handed Len a paper. It was a surprisingly well detailed scene of stormy clouds and different bolts of lightning.

Len lifted an eyebrow. “You want the whole thing?” He asked, just to make sure.

“Yes,” came the quick answer. “On my back. The clouds should be kind of purple. And the Lightning… Red and yellow.”

Len nodded, the design already taking place in his head, changing slightly to accommodate the human body.  
“Alright,” he said. “Sit down, I need to trace this. It will take us almost all afternoon; you’re lucky I have no appointments today.”

He went to the usual spiel, had the kid sign the waiver, and gave him the cost. The kid didn’t even blink.  
Then Len started preparing.

Half an hour later, the kid was lying face down on the chair, his back a gorgeous canvas in front of Len’s eyes. It was clear, no scars or other blemishes aside from a few scattered moles. On an older body, Len might have appreciated the view as more than just an artist.

As it was, he started working, talking in low, soothing tones to keep the kid calm.

His guest squirmed a bit at the first few strokes of the gun, and sometimes he tensed and whimpered. Len always stroked down his back in response to those sounds.

Len hated that his passion hurt people just like his side job did. He wished he could find a way to give someone the art they deserved without making them cry.  
But that was not the way tattoos worked.

So instead he kept going, knowing the kid would soon fall into the usual trace that accompanied big pieces like this.

And sure enough, when he finished the outline after an hour, the kid was calm and quiet.  
Len coaxed him into drinking some water while he switched guns.

“That was the worst part,” he promised and the kid smiled slightly.  
“The color and filling is not as bad. Will take some more time though.”

The kid nodded and moved back down at Len’s signal.  
Len went back to work.

 

“It’s perfect,” the kid breathed as he admired the finished scene in the mirror.  
Len had to agree. This was one of his best works yet.

“Might I take a picture for my portfolio?” He asked and the kid happily agreed.  
Len took some pictures from different angles and then explained the cleaning process.  
The kid listened intently and nodded that he understood.

“Thank you,” the kid said after paying. “This is… I feel better now.”

Len grinned. “Kind of the point, kid,” he told him. “Tattoos are a way to help you express yourself, the things you can’t put into words.”

The kid nodded again and gave Len a smile so brittle but brightly, he felt the urge to hug him.  
“That it does.”

With that he left Len’s studio.

***

Years later, as Len stood in the woods outside of Central City, and looked into the older face of his young customer he wondered if his masterpiece hat anything to do with the way Barry Allen’s life had turned out.

He wanted to see his art again.

**Author's Note:**

> This is marked as complete as I don't think I'll continue it.


End file.
